The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), in cooperation with the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), has been conducting a world-wide survey of hydrogen (H/'H) and oxygen (O/O) isotope composition of monthly precipitation since 1961 At present, 72 IAEA/WMO network stations are in operation Another 82 stations belonging to national organizations continue to send their results to the IAEA for publication The paper focuses on basic features of spatial and temporal distribution of deuterium and O in global precipitation, as derived from the IAEA/WMO isotope database The internal structure and basic characteristics of this database are discussed in some detail The existing phenomenological relationships between observed stable isotope composition of precipitation and various climate-related parameters such as local surface air temperature and amount of precipitation are reviewed and critically assessed Attempts are presented towards revealing interannual fluctuations in the accumulated isotope records and relating them to changes of precipitation amount and the surface air temperature over the past 30 years

Isotopic Patterns in Modern Global Precipitation

Changes of the isotopic composition of water within the water cycle provide a recognizable signature, relating such water to the different phases of the cycle. The isotope fractionations that accompany the evaporation from the ocean and other surface waters and the reverse process of rain formation account for the most notable changes. As a result, meteoric waters are depleted in the heavy isotopic species of H and O relative to ocean waters, whereas waters in evaporative systems such as lakes, plants, and soilwaters are relatively enriched. During the passage through the aquifers, the isotope composition of water is essentially a conservative property at ambient temperatures, but at elevated temperatures, interaction with the rock matrix may perturb the isotope composition. These changes of the isotope composition in atmospheric waters, surface water, soil, and groundwaters, as well as in the biosphere, are applied in the characterization of hydrological system as well as indicators of paleo-climatological conditions in proxy materials in climatic archives, such as ice, lake sediments, or organic materials.

Oxygen and hydrogen isotopes in the hydrologic cycle

Environmental isotopes (18O, ²H) have been measured, between March 1997 and March 1999, at 10 stations located in the Mediterranean seaside countries (2 in Spain, 1 in Tunisia, 7 in France). Data collected on monthly, event and fractionated basis allow to understand the modifications of the isotopic content of precipitation due to meteorological phenomena. A monthly monitoring shows that the Western Mediterranean has a unique isotopic characteristic that is between Atlantic and Eastern Mediterranean. A daily survey highlights the impact of the origins and trajectories of air masses on the amount and the oxygen-18 content of rainfalls: enriched and higher amount Mediterranean precipitation, depleted and lower amount Atlantic precipitation. At last, fractionated sampling of heavy precipitation allows to establish a typology of the variations of the isotopic composition during a rain event.

https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1029/2000GL012407

Isotopic typology of the precipitation in the Western Mediterranean Region at three different time scales

Continental Oxygen Isotopic Record of the Last 170,000 Years in Jerusalem☆

Continuous time series of δD and δ 18 O in atmospheric water vapour and precipitation at Heidelberg are presented for the years 1981 to 1988. It is often not possible to derive the isotopic composition of the water vapour from the isotopic composition of precipitation for individual months. However, a close relationship does exist between the isotopic composition of the vapour and the precipitation on a timescale of a few years. The correlation of isotopic composition with temperature is much better for the vapour data than for the precipitation data. The Δδ/ΔT relationship of the seasonal variations is itself a function of temperature, being much lower during warmer periods than during cold periods. Especially during summer months, the admixture of water vapour originating from plant transpiration plays an important role in biasing the Δδ/ΔT relationship towards lower values. This effect complicates the calculation of palaeotemperatures using isotopic data. DOI: 10.1034/j.1600-0889.1991.t01-2-00003.x

An 8‐year record of the seasonal variation of 2H and 18O in atmospheric water vapour and precipitation at Heidelberg, Germany

The data from a precipitation sampling program in Israel show the synoptic scale history of the air masses to be the predominant factor which controls the isotopic data. Within a single storm, the passage of a front is always associated with values most depleted in the heavy isotopes. Local factors and especially the enrichment of the heavy isotopic species resulting from partial evaporation of rain in low lying stations, are superimposed on these large-scale effects. DOI: 10.1034/j.1600-0889.1990.t01-2-00005.x

M. Rindsberger

Papers

Patterns of the isotopic composition of precipitation in time and space: data from the Israeli storm water collection program